“The Torn Skirt is a hot book, a thrilling romance of teen rage and longing -- like S.E. Hinton’s The Outsiders, except about girls.” — Mary Gaitskill, author of Two Girls, Fat and Thin

At Mt. Douglas (a.k.a. Mt. Drug) High, all the girls have feathered hair, and the sweet scent of Love's Baby Soft can't hide the musk of raw teenage anger, apathy, and desire. Sara Shaw is a girl full of fever and longing, a girl looking for something risky, something real. Her only possible salvation comes in the willowy form of the mysterious Justine, the outlaw girl in the torn skirt. The search for Justine will lead Sara on a daring odyssey into an underworld of hookers and johns, junkies and thieves, runaway girls and skater boys, and, ultimately, into a violent tragedy.

REBECCA GODFREY was an award-winning novelist and journalist. Her first novel, The Torn Skirt, was a national bestseller and a finalist for the Ethel Wilson Fiction Prize. Under the Bridge received one of Canada's largest literary awards, the British Columbia Award for Canadian Nonfiction, as well as the Arthur Ellis Award for Excellence in Crime Writing. She held an MFA from Sarah Lawrence College, and received fellowships from Yaddo and The MacDowell Colony. She taught writing at Columbia University, and lived with her family in upstate New York. She died in 2022.

Rebecca Godfrey's profile page

“I loved and believed that narrative of a 16 year old mind—immature, abandoned and yet exploding. It came from a heartfelt and true perception, an authentic writers’ desire. Which made it rock.” — Thurston Moore, Sonic Youth

“The Torn Skirt is a hot book, a thrilling romance of teen rage and longing -- like S.E. Hinton’s The Outsiders, except about girls.” — Mary Gaitskill, author of Two Girls, Fat and Thin

“The Torn Skirt inspired a range of rabid fans, from literary hipsters to renegade kids.” — Rolling Stone

“A serious bullet of a book....Godfrey constantly impresses with her precise eye and impassioned tone. A bright new voice.” — Kirkus Reviews, Starred Review

“No one understands the teenage mind like Rebecca Godfrey. An no one can penetrate its darkest recesses with such insight and compassion.” — Gary Shteyngart, author of The Russian Debutante's Handbook

“Captivating . . . Stark and bewitching . . . A voice that is fresh, disaffected and angst-ridden . . . Sara is afflicted with an overwhelming sense of compassion . . . Her world is a persuasive one, as malignant and addictive as a cigarette.” — New York Times Book Review

“A dizzying mix of hope and despair.” — Oregonian

“A wild, edgy ride...The Torn Skirt has enough drugs, parties, punks and criminal behavior to convince most mothers that locking their little darling in the upstairs bedroom is the safest way to go.” — Victoria Times-Colonist (Canada)

“[The] voice of the bad girls...[a] literary rebellion.” — Maclean's

“Unexpected, sharp as broken glass. She nails the dichotomy of teen fury and shoulder-shrugging apathy. A daunting debut that deserves notice...damn near pitch -perfect.” — Calgary Sun (Canada)